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Blam! Military vehicle auction includes Scud launcher

Chris Woodyard

Unfortunately, Patriot missile batteries to guard against Scud missile attacks are not included in the sale. Photo: Havakuk Levison

Need a Soviet motorised launcher for your Scud missiles? Or a DUKW amphibious personnel carrier to take a shortcut across the water? Look no further.

Those, and a lot of tanks, will be featured next month at an auction of military equipment at Portola Valley in California. All told, 114 vehicles from World War I to the Gulf War will be up for grabs at the Auctions America event from July 11 to 12.

The items were part of a collection amassed over three decades by Jacques M. Littlefield, the founder of the Military Vehicle Technology Foundation in California, a museum dedicated to the preservation of military vehicles.

"The Littlefield Collection boasts an impressive range of vehicles and represents points in history that appeal to a global audience beyond traditional military collectors," says Ian Kelleher, of Auctions America. "The majority of the collection remains drivable and usable and can be easily repurposed for private use."

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Among the vehicles going on the block are a restored, fully drivable US Army M37105mm Howitzer Motor Carriage, built in October 1945 by American Car & Foundry, and a nearly 42-ton Scud missile launcher from back in the USSR. And, of course, the DUKW amphibious personnel carrier.

In case you're wondering, the Scud missile launcher is valued at least $300,000 and, judging from the pictures, the missile is included.